SUSTAINABILITY SERIES 2023-2024 by NLGI

SUSTAINABILITY SERIES

At the 2022 Annual Meeting, NLGI held a Sustainability Panel Discussion involving industry experts, Dr. Piet Lugt, SKF, Dr. Ryan Evans, The Timken Company and Andreas Dodos, Eldon’s. The discussion was moderated by Joe Kaperick, Afton Chemical Corporation.

As NLGI continues to explore resources to help members with their sustainability efforts, please enjoy this “Sustainability Series” including additional insights on grease from cradle to grave. This sustainability series ran from the October/December 2022 to the March/April 2023 Spokesman issues.

Dr. Ryan Evans

The Timken Company

Andreas Dodos ELDON’s S.A.

Dr. Piet Lugt SKF

If we think of the “footprint” in our industry as being the negative impacts of obtaining the raw materials and producing the grease and bearings, what are your thoughts about the positive impacts of these products and how we might quantify these?

The positive impact of lubricating grease is that it reduces friction and therefore helps in reducing energy consumption. The global bearing market is 140 million bearings . The total energy loss in these bearings is about 500 TWh/year. The equivalent of this is 66 million tons of oil equivalent (!) corresponding to about 1% of the total energy consumption (Bakolas, V.,Roedel, P., Oliver Koch and Pausch, M., A first approximation of the global energy consumption of ball bearings, Tribology Transactions, 2021). It is therefore significant to develop bearing solutions with reduced friction. By far most bearings are grease lubricated. Semi-dry friction typically gives a coefficient of friction of 0.6. By using (grease) lubrication this is reduced to say 0.04. one may argue that if there would be no lubricating greases the total energy consumption would be a factor 15 higher. So the word cannot do without lubrication. It is up to our community to reduce friction (performance of lubricants) and reduce the impact on the environment.

- Piet Lugt; SKF

Highly engineered bearings and greases improve machine efficiency and reduce friction throughout the lifetime of equipment – ultimately reducing the power loss experienced by their end users as compared to using lessengineered or standard bearings and greases for the same purposes. In addition, bearings that are optimized for durability and reliability can have longer service times in applications and require less maintenance and shorter replacement intervals. This can save the energy and materials required to produce replacement parts.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

Do you think it is possible to ultimately come up with a single number that combines these “footprint” and “handprint” measurements?

It remains to be seen whether a single number can be agreed upon to illustrate the balance between carbon that is expended going into producing tribological components and lubricants and carbon use that is avoided in end-use equipment utilizing these technologies. We believe it is possible but will require many simplifying assumptions and agreements on definitions of inputs and outputs into that balance.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

Are there other industry organizations that you are either working with or aware of that are doing work in the area of sustainability that you feel we should either model some aspect of within NLGI or that we could “piggyback” on to avoid duplication of effort?

Sustainability is high on the agenda of every company. SKF is working with Environdec (www.environdec.com) to create PCR (Product Category Rules = standardized LCA recipe) as well as EPD (Environmental Product Declarations = Type III / ISO 14025)..

- Piet Lugt; SKF

ELGI is launching a sustainability consortium. Individual companies are working create their own sustainability calculations at the request of their customers and stakeholders, usually within the context of a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report. For example, The Timken Company published its Sustainable Engineering Process within its 2021 CSR (www.timken.com).

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

What is a “green grease”?

Green grease

= 1) grease that has a very low friction

= 2) grease that has a very low C02 footprint (cradle to cradle). = 3) grease without hazardous ingredients

= 4) grease with as less as possible depletion of natural resources (eg. water,…)

- Piet Lugt; SKF

“Green grease” is a vague term. It may refer to a grease that was manufactured from renewable source materials. It may refer to a high-performance grease that has very high life and requires many fewer re-greasing maintenance intervals over the life of a bearing in an application. It may refer to a grease that is biodegradable, food safe, and non-toxic and thereby is easily and safely disintegrated at the end of its life as a lubricant.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

What specific actions do you think NLGI could or should take to help its member companies in relation to sustainability efforts?

• Create an agreed and standardized LCA recipe; a Product Category rule for greases

• Work on Grease recyclability

• Develop standardized test methods for bearing friction and degradability.

• Provide a platform for joint research for - Reducing friction

- Reducing the carbon footprint due to grease consumption

- Zero Carbon cradle to cradle grease

• Provide support/recommendation for non-hazardous greases (“white SDS”)

- Piet Lugt; SKF

NLGI should continue the sustainability dialogue and create networking opportunities to help companies, government agencies, and universities transparently share their progress on these topics and adopt best practices. NLGI should also encourage participation from all points in the value stream, from raw material suppliers to component manufacturers to equipment builders to end users. This may require engaging different functional area experts within organizations than typically associate with NLGI.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

What hardware (bearings, seals, gears, etc.) changes might be required to accommodate green greases?

Depending on the tribology & chemical performance there might be a need of bearing material change, compatibility considerations, leakage prevention measures, change/modification of bearing production methods, bearing design changes, ….

- Piet Lugt; SKF

As it is currently difficult to define “green grease”, any needed hardware changes to accommodate its use are also hard to define in general. However, the standard considerations for grease compatibility with bearings and seals would be investigated such as bleed, base oil viscosity, grease life, heat tolerance, seal swell, etc. Ultimately, hardware suppliers will seek to delight their customers with reliable and durable component and lubricant solutions.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

How can sustainable manufacturing techniques bring benefits to the grease producer?

It will reduce the C02 footprint caused by grease consumption.

- Piet Lugt; SKF

Is a “green grease” necessarily non-toxic and biodegradable?

A “green grease” minimizes the impact on the environment. From a practical stand point, this depends on the application. For a sealed and greased for life bearing the most important is a grease with very low frictional power loss. For open system/total loss, it is the grease consumption that dominates the ultimate C02 emission incl. the loss impact on the environment

- Piet Lugt; SKF

Doesn’t have to be, per comments above.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

How is the fate or end-of-life of a grease determined from a hardware manufacturer’s point of view?

End of grease life is the point in time when the grease is no longer able to lubricate a bearing. In a test this is determined by measuring the motor torque (usually done by measuring the electrical current) or bearing temperature. This increases very rapidly when the grease has lost its ‘lubricity’.

In some industrial applications, the relubrication interval (time well-before the end of grease life) is sometimes also determined by the point in time when the grease is contaminated by solid particles or fluids (such as water) such that the risk of bearing damage is unacceptably high.

- Piet Lugt; SKF

A grease usually is lost or degraded with use in a bearing. It may be lost through leakage through seals or pushed out during re-greasing. It may be degraded by thickener breakdown, drying, and embrittlement. The base oil may be oxidized or evaporated within the high-pressure bearing contacts in the bearing cavity. Regreasing intervals are usually determined based on the loss or degradation rate of grease in the bearing, or on the occasion a grease is known to be compromised by contamination, high temperatures, oxidation or other factors. Equipment manufacturers and/or bearing suppliers can usually advise on re-greasing intervals appropriate for your application and duty cycles.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

Compare and contrast “factory filled for life” equipment with equipment that must be relubricated from a sustainability perspective.

For a “sealed and greased for life” application, the C02 footprint is determined by the frictional properties of the grease. For total loss systems the footprint is determined by the grease consumption.

- Piet Lugt; SKF

“Factory filled for life” greased equipment is usually subject to extensive grease selection and qualification activities during the design stage, as well as significant seal engineering, to ensure the designed system meets the “filled for life” expectation of the customer. Examples of these cases are packaged wheel end bearing hub units and rail car axle bearings. Re-lubricated applications may have more flexibility in initial grease selection, re-greasing interval, and sealing strategy. A benefit of this additional flexibility over the equipment life cycle is the possibility of optimizing the grease lubrication system design and possibly even the addition of automated lubrication systems to supply grease in the right quantity and time interval at engineered specifications.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

Is sustainable operation a financial burden or a benefit for companies?

It should not be seen as a burden or benefit. It is a must for companies. Society is asking for CO2 reduction. Therefore customers are asking for CO2 reduction and therefore companies must provide products with a low CO2 footprint. This applies to all companies. So in order to survive/grow, companies must work on making their operations more sustainable.

- Piet Lugt; SKF

Many sustainable operations have cost reduction and other benefits to companies today. The challenge for future efforts is to find the right technologies that improve sustainability while at the same time making economic sense for manufacturers, customers, and end users.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

How can green washing be avoided?

NLGI can play a role in this by developing criteria that are clear and measurable for sustainability.

Eg. establish a standard for friction torque measurements and to implement this in the grease specifications.

Eg. A standardized and agreed way of calculating Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for all types of greases- Piet Lugt; SKF

Green washing can be avoided by clearly defining terms and metrics for measuring and assessing sustainability efforts. Consensus agreement needs to be created on these base metrics. Auditable and demonstrable mechanisms for calculating and showing adherence to sustainability claims must be created as well.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

What would a possible classification of Lithium Hydroxide mean for the grease industry?

It would promote innovation in the grease industry. Lithium Hydroxide has been used since 1940. It will also promote the use of other eg. polyurea in applications where traditionally lithium is used in the US and Europe.

- Piet Lugt; SKF

What is needed to develop a suitable platform for the industry to work together? What should be the expected outcomes?

A sustainability platform for the equipment and grease industry to work together on must include grease suppliers, component suppliers, equipment suppliers, and end users. Otherwise the risk is that disagreement on sustainability terms and metrics will arise at critical points in the connected value stream. The platform should span geographies but may need to narrow to specific application areas to focus interest. Patience and a willingness to start with basic definitions and quantities will be needed as a full sustainability analysis method is built.

- Ryan Evans, The Timken Company

Is there an available model today for calculating the carbon footprint of a grease manufacturer?

SKF has a model to calculate the carbon footprint: https://www.skf.com/group/organisation/sustainability/decarbonizing/co2-dashboard

It contains the effect of grease lubrication. It is important to not only consider the C02 emissions related to the grease manufacturing itself. Frictional properties should be included, as well as long grease life (reduction of consumption and increase of reliability).

- Piet Lugt; SKF

NLGI SUSTAINABILITY

Three task forces were created, including:

• Identifying and measuring footprint, handprint, and life-cycle analysis

• Getting regular updates from experts in the field of sustainability

• Environmental, Health, and Safety implications in the grease industry on universal, global initiatives

SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES

• Working with API on Lubricants Life Cycle Assessment and Carbon Footprinting- Methodology and Best Practice

• Working with other industry organizations on universal, global initiatives

COMING SOON:

SUSTAINABILITY SECTION OF THE NLGI WEBSITE

NLGI SUSTAINABILITY

SUSTAINABILITY TECH ARTICLES | RESOURCES | PRESENTATIONS

NLGI and the Sustainability Committee is excited to announce the launch of the NLGI Sustainability website. This website is a resource for members to access sustainability related information such as the Sustainability Series, Sustainability Committee Updates, Sustainability Technical Articles, along with other resources and presentations. The Sustainability Committee will continue to update this website with additional information to support members sustainability efforts. If you are interested in exploring a sustainability related topic, please reach out to NLGI@nlgi.org

SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE

Interested in Joining? Contact NLGI@nlgi.org

Current Initiatives:

1. Three task forces were created, including:

• Identifying and measuring footprint, handprint, and life-cycle analysis

• Getting regular updates from experts in the field of sustainability

• Environmental, Health, and Safety implications in the grease industry

2. Working with API on Lubricants Life Cycle Assessment and Carbon Footprinting- Methodology and Best Practice

3. Working with other industry organizations on universal, global initiatives

SUSTAINABILITY DEFINITION:

“Meeting

www.nlgi.org/nlgi-sustainability-page/

NLGI SUSTAINABILITY

Crystal O’Halloran, NLGI Executive Director attends second annual ELGISTC meeting in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The meeting was held on October 24, 2023 and included updates from all five taskforces including:

• Regulation & Communication Task Force

• Co2, Carbon Footprint Task Force

• Life Cycle Analysis Task Force

• End User Task Force

• End of Life Task Force

Please contact carol@elgi.demon.nl if interested in joining the ELGISTC.